Star-Ledger columnist Mark Di Ionno, center, surveys Hurricane Sandy-damaged homes with N.J. National Guard troops in Normandy Beach in November 2012. Di Ionno was honored as a 2013 Pulitzer finalist for a collection of columns that included commentary on the aftermath of Sandy.Andrew Mills/The Star-Ledger

Star-Ledger columnist Mark Di Ionno was named a Pulitzer Prize finalist today for a collection of columns on Hurricane Sandy, the death of Tyler Clementi and other New Jersey issues.

The Pulitzer committee, which hands out journalism’s top prize, called Di Ionno’s writing "hard hitting."

Bret Stephens of the Wall Street Journal was named the winner of the Pulitzer for commentary for his collection of columns on American foreign policy and domestic politics. Di Ionno was a finalist in the category along with Juliette Kayyem, a Boston Globe columnist who was cited for her columns on women in combat, oil drilling in Alaska and other issues.

"Obviously, this is a life-changing moment for someone who has given two decades of his life to The Star-Ledger in a variety of positions. Through it all, Mark has loved The Ledger and he has loved his work," Star-Ledger editor Kevin Whitmer said in a message to the staff.

The Star-Ledger has previously won three Pulitzer Prizes. In 2011, reporter Amy Ellis Nutt was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in feature writing for "The Wreck of the Lady Mary," an investigation into the sinking of a fishing boat off the coast of Cape May.

In 2001, Matt Rainey won in the feature photography category. In 2005, the staff won for breaking news coverage of the resignation of former Gov. James E. McGreevey.

Today’s Pulitzer winners included the New York Times, which won top honors in four categories. They included the award for investigative reporting for stories that detailed how Wal-Mart used bribery to expand in Mexico.

The Pulitzers are given out each year by Columbia University on the recommendation of a board of journalists, academics and others. Each award carries a $10,000 prize, except for the public service award, which is a gold medal.

The Sun Sentinel in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., was awarded the public service Pulitzer for its reporting on off-duty police officers’ reckless driving.

The prize in breaking news photography went to the Associated Press for its coverage of the Syria civil war.

A New York-based online nonprofit news organization that covers energy, InsideClimate News, won in the national reporting category for stories on flawed regulation of the nation’s oil pipelines.

The Times, which has won more Pulitzers than any other news organization, was also honored for international reporting for detailing the business dealings and extreme wealth of relatives of top officials in China’s communist party; for explanatory reporting, for a look at the business practices of Apple and other technology companies; and for feature writing, for an account of skiers killed in an avalanche in Washington state.

The Pulitzer in breaking news reporting went to the Denver Post for its coverage of the shooting at a movie theater last summer in Aurora, Colo., that left 12 people dead.

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The Star Tribune of Minneapolis captured two Pulitzers: It was honored in the local reporting category for its coverage of a spike in infant deaths in poorly regulated day care centers, and Steve Sack won for editorial cartooning.

In the criticism category, Philip Kennicott of The Washington Post was honored for his essays on art.

The prize for editorial writing went to Tim Nickens and Dan Ruth of the Tampa Bay Times of St. Petersburg, Fla., for a campaign that helped continue fluoridation of the drinking water for the county’s 700,000 people.

Javier Manzano, a freelance photographer, won the feature photography prize for a picture distributed by Agence France-Presse of two Syrian rebel soldiers.

In the non-journalism categories, "The Orphan Master’s Son" by Adam Johnson was named the top fiction book. In a surprise move, there was no winner in the category last year.

Other literary winners were "Disgraced" by Ayad Akhtar for drama; "Embers of War: The Fall of an Empire and the Making of America’s Vietnam" by Fredrik Logevall for history; "The Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo" by Tom Reiss for biography; "Stag’s Leap" by Sharon Olds for poetry; and "Devil in the Grove: Thurgood Marshall, the Groveland Boys, and the Dawn of a New America" by Gilbert King for general nonfiction.

"Partita for 8 Voices" by Caroline Shaw was awarded the music prize.

Star-Ledger staff writer Kelly Heyboer and the Associated Press contributed to this report.